About the French Bulldog
Part of the French Bulldog's ancestry lies in Britain. The Royal Kennel Club traces it to the Toy Bulldogs of the 1850s, which Nottingham lace makers took with them when they moved to northern France during the Industrial Revolution. Probably crossed with other short-faced dogs there, these small bulldogs developed over about three decades into the French Bulldog, became fashionable in Paris and came back to Britain towards the end of the 1800s. The French Bulldog Club of England was founded in 1902 and regards itself as the breed's parent club in the UK, and The Kennel Club recognised the breed in 1906. It sits in the Utility group. The RKC reports that registrations rose roughly tenfold between 2009 and 2015, the year the breed ranked third in UK popularity.
Size and build
This is a small, compact and sturdy dog with good bone, a short tail and upright bat ears that are wide at the base and rounded at the tip. The breed standard gives ideal weights of 12.5 kg (28 lb) for dogs and 11 kg (24 lb) for bitches, and makes clear that a smaller dog should never come at the cost of soundness. It also asks for visibly open nostrils and states that dogs showing respiratory distress or excessive breathing noise are unacceptable.
Coat and grooming
The coat is short, fine, smooth and glossy. The RKC suggests grooming once a week, and the breed does shed. For flat-faced breeds the RKC also advises that any wrinkles on the face are kept dry and clean to help prevent skin trouble. The standard accepts three colours: brindle, fawn and pied (mainly white with brindle or fawn patches). All other colours are unacceptable under the standard, and the RKC will not register merle puppies because in this breed merle is linked to a higher risk of hearing and sight problems.
Exercise
The RKC puts exercise needs at up to an hour a day. It lists the breed as suited to a flat with a small or medium garden, in town or country.
Temperament and suitability
The breed standard describes the French Bulldog as full of courage with a clownish side, and as lively, deeply affectionate and intelligent. Its short face brings health risks, which are covered in the health section below. The RKC gives a typical lifespan of over 10 years.
French Bulldog health tests
As a brachycephalic (flat-faced) breed, the French Bulldog is at risk of brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome (BOAS), a lifelong, progressive breathing problem that can limit exercise, play, eating and sleep. The RKC also highlights skin fold infections, overcrowded teeth and eye problems linked to shallow eye sockets.
The RKC's minimum Good Practice test is the Respiratory Function Grading Scheme, which it runs jointly with the University of Cambridge. A specially trained vet listens to the dog's breathing at rest and again after three minutes of brisk exercise, then grades it from 0 (no signs) to 3 (severe signs). The RKC does not recommend breeding from a grade 3 dog. Grading is available from 12 months of age, with a repeat assessment advised every two years while the dog is used for breeding. Best Practice adds a hereditary cataract DNA test and hip, elbow and eye screening.
The breed has been in Breed Watch Category 3 since 1 January 2025. Points of concern for show judges include signs of breathing difficulty, pinched nostrils, protruding eyes, skin fold dermatitis, a short neck, an exaggerated roach back, an excessively undershot jaw, and tails that are too short, screwed, inverted or tight. Testing lowers risk but cannot guarantee a healthy puppy.
Health tests and schemes for the French Bulldog (RKC):
- Respiratory Function Grading Scheme, for BOAS (RKC Good Practice, the minimum)
- DNA test for hereditary cataracts (HC-HSF4-2) (RKC Best Practice)
- BVA/KC Hip Dysplasia Scheme (RKC Best Practice)
- BVA/KC Elbow Dysplasia Scheme (RKC Best Practice)
- BVA/KC/ISDS Eye Scheme (RKC Best Practice)
- Breed Watch: Category 3
- Breed club: French Bulldog Club of England Health Scheme (Bronze, Silver and Gold levels)
Choosing a French Bulldog breeder
A careful French Bulldog breeder will have both parents graded under the Respiratory Function Grading Scheme and will show you the results, which also appear on the RKC Health Test Results Finder. Breeders following RKC Best Practice also test for hereditary cataracts and screen hips, elbows and eyes, and some hold French Bulldog Club of England Health Scheme certificates. The RKC suggests avoiding puppies whose parents breathe loudly, snore while awake, snort or wheeze, and checking that the parents' nostrils look open rather than pinched.
The breed club urges buyers never to buy a puppy unless they have seen it together with its mother, and warns that a seller who can supply whatever colour or sex you want is almost certainly a broker or dealer. Expect breed standard colours; the RKC says a puppy should not cost more than others of its breed because of an unusual colour. In England, a breeder who breeds three or more litters in 12 months and sells any of the puppies needs a council licence and must show its number in adverts.
Questions to ask a French Bulldog breeder:
- What Respiratory Function Grades do the sire and dam hold, and when were they assessed?
- Have the parents had the HC-HSF4-2 DNA test and hip, elbow and eye screening?
- Can I see the puppy with its mother and watch her move and breathe?
- Is the puppy a breed standard colour, and will it be RKC registered?
- Do you hold a council breeding licence, and what support do you offer after the sale?
French Bulldog questions
Why is the French Bulldog in Breed Watch Category 3?
The Royal Kennel Club places breeds in Category 3 when they are more prone to health problems caused by exaggerated conformation, and the French Bulldog joined the category on 1 January 2025. Judges are asked to watch for signs of breathing difficulty, pinched nostrils, protruding eyes, skin fold dermatitis, a short neck, an exaggerated roach back, an excessively undershot jaw and poorly formed tails.
What is the Respiratory Function Grading Scheme?
It is a breathing assessment for flat-faced breeds, run by the RKC with the University of Cambridge. A trained vet listens to the dog's breathing before and after three minutes of exercise and grades it from 0 to 3. Dogs can be graded from 12 months, results appear on the RKC Health Test Results Finder, and the RKC does not recommend breeding from grade 3 dogs.
Are blue or merle French Bulldogs recognised?
The breed standard accepts only brindle, fawn and pied, and treats all other colours as unacceptable. The RKC lists blue as a non-breed-standard colour and will not register merle French Bulldog puppies, because merle in this breed carries a higher risk of hearing and sight problems. More generally, it warns against breeding for colours that are in fashion, citing colour dilution alopecia as an example.
Can a French Bulldog live in a flat?
The RKC lists the French Bulldog as suitable for a flat with a small or medium garden, in town or country, and puts its exercise needs at up to an hour a day. Check the parents' breathing grades, as breathing problems can limit exercise and play.
More for French Bulldog owners and breeders
- French Bulldog: breeders
- French Bulldog: puppies for sale
- French Bulldog: stud dogs
- All Utility group breeds
Official sources
- French Bulldog breed information - Royal Kennel Club
- French Bulldog breed standard - Royal Kennel Club
- French Bulldog Breed Watch Category 3 - Royal Kennel Club
- Breed Watch (health and welfare of show dogs) - Royal Kennel Club
- Respiratory Function Grading Scheme - Royal Kennel Club
- Brachycephalic breeds hub - Royal Kennel Club
- Buying a flat-faced puppy - Royal Kennel Club
- Rare and unusual colours - Royal Kennel Club
- The French Bulldog Club of England
- Health - The French Bulldog Club of England
- French Bulldog Health Scheme information - The French Bulldog Club of England
- Buying a puppy - The French Bulldog Club of England
- BVA/KC Hip Dysplasia Scheme - British Veterinary Association
- BVA/KC Elbow Dysplasia Scheme - British Veterinary Association
- BVA/KC/ISDS Eye Scheme - British Veterinary Association
- Health Test Results Finder - Royal Kennel Club
- Inbreeding coefficient calculator - Royal Kennel Club
- Dog breeding licence (England) - GOV.UK